If I'd Known Then

I bought a book this week called "If I'd Known Then: Women in their 20's and 30's Write Letters to Their Younger Selves." The author asked the women (All noteworthy on some level) to write letters to the girls they once were, letters filled with the advice and wisdom they wished they'd possessed when they were younger. Several of the letters were based on specific situations or timeframes that were mentioned in a short story that precedes each letter.

The book was relatively small but big on emotion as I flipped through the pages and cried on more than one occasion when I recognized something I would have put in my own letter to my younger self.

The more I read, the more I thought that every woman SHOULD write a letter to her younger self. Maybe no one ever reads it. Maybe it serves as an open letter to your own daughter or another young girl who might never admit that something in the letter made a difference to her. Maybe its only purpose is a sort of therapy to recognize what you didn't know then and how you might change things knowing what you know now. Maybe, like my letter – it's a way of your grown up self to just let go and know that the person you were then made you the person you are today.

So here is my letter… and if you feel so inclined… write your own. It might make a difference to someone someday.
Dear Angel,
You're getting ready to celebrate your 16th birthday! I know sometimes you're surprised you made it! I know it seemed like you would never arrive here – but you did! Believe me when I tell you that as you get older, time goes by much more quickly, so slow down… You have all the time in the world to grow up!

Don't worry about all the drama that surrounds high school girls. The circle of friends that you have now is large… but the circle that truly matters will be small. The friends that are important will remain part of your life for a very long time. So don't get caught up in all that seems so serious right now. I promise, it's really not.

I won't lie to you, the next few years are not going to be at all what you are expecting. I know you have some ideas of how things are going to be but life is happening. Choices are about to be made and sometimes things just don't happen the way we think they should. It will be very difficult and at times will even be scary but you will know in the depth of your spirit that this is not permanent. So hold on tight… it will be a very bumpy ride but trust that one day it will all be just fine and the things you are about to go through will seem like a bad Lifetime Movie.

Hold on to who you are and don't ever sacrifice that for anyone. Not friends, not family, not a husband or a lover. Stand up for yourself and don't make decisions based on fear. Wake up every day and know that no matter what you are facing you are taking it head on and as long as you do that, you will make it. Challenge yourself to be better and to want better because you KNOW better. Even when you think it can't get any worse, try to smile to yourself once in awhile. I can assure you, it's all going to be just fine!

Wishing I could walk you through it,
Angel

PS..
Two more things, I am sorry to tell you that while Troy really is a good guy, he isn't going to be the one who makes you realize what you've been missing. The great news is… by standards outside the halls of Hemet High School, you're not fat at all.